Be forewarned, Conjure Wife was written in 1943 and presents some unflattering gender roles and stereotypes. The protagonist Norman thinks highlight of his wife Transy specifically because she was “so sane, so healthily contemptuous of palmistry, astrology, numerology and all other superstitious fads.” Multiple times in the story Norman equates science and rationality with men and superstitious frippery with women. Transy and the other female characters are perfect post-war housewives dedicated to helping their husbands’ careers at a small liberal arts college.
The women helping their husbands’ careers is a cool piece of world-building by Fritz Leiber. They are all more than charming social ladies. The wives are all witches and use their powers to help their husbands and sabotage their rivals. Of course the men have no idea these invisible power struggles are happening, they think they’ve earned all their achievements. There is something about taking deep magic and using it for something as petty as academic drama. The low stakes nature of academic bickering contrasts well with the terrifyingly strong powers wielded by the professors’ wives. The idea is simultaneously stupid and relatable. So much could be done if this magic was harnessed and directed to more worthwhile endeavors. But who amongst us wouldn’t use our power to secure a extra grant funding or a new promotion?
Leiber takes this idea and explodes it out in the second half of the novel. It turns out, all women are actually witches and can do magic. However, every woman only knows tiny bits of magic passed down from mothers and aunts. Norman compares magic to physics; the difference being that physics is out in the open and everyone is studying and comparing notes. Women doing magic can only experiment in their immediate vicinity which leads magic to being used mostly for mundane tasks like helping a cleaning girl get stains out of bed-sheets. Or helping advance your husband’s career.
Conjure Wife deserves the criticism it gets when viewed through a feminist lens. This is the first Leiber book I’ve read so I can’t say if these attitudes towards women are common themes of his. It also may be a product of its time; I haven’t read a ton of books from the 40s and 50s that put so much emphasis on gender differences. I’ve read some excellent feminist critiques that got me thinking how Leiber’s ideas could be updated and adapted into new stories.
I like how he portrays magic even though it was the hyper rational protagonist who literally learned magic might be real a week ago (and still tries to avoid believing it) realized why magic wasn’t developing even though women have been practicing it for thousands of years. The story itself is creepy and full of paranoia making it a good Halloween read. The second half of the book is full of twists and turns as Norman and Transy try to escape the malevolent machinations of their society peers. As a piece of 1940s horror fiction I am sure you can do worse.
The Keasy Depot 